Tumbling-drum.



No. 820,021. 4 PATENTED MAY 8, 1906.

' W. E. SMITH. v

TUMBLING DRUM.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.25, 1905- UNITED STATEB PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM R. SMITH, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO BUFFALO LEATHER(10., OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF WEST VIRGINIA.

TUIVlBLlNG-DRUIVI.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 8, 1906.

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM R. SMITH, of Buffalo, in the county of Erieand State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Tumbling-Drums, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is an improvement in tumbling-drums, and particularly inthe means for supportin and rotating such drums. Its object is to. rnisha construction and arrangement of supporting and rotating mechanism ofthe general character described in my prior patent, No. 779,746, grantedJ anuary 10, 1905, by which the amount of energy necessary to rotate thedrum may be greatly reduced.

Of the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a sectional endelevation of a tumbling-drum and operating mechanism therefor embodyingthe princ1ples of the present invention Fig. 2 represents a sideelevation of the same. Fig. 3 represents a sectional detail View showingone of the idle supporting rolls or wheels for the drum. Fig. 4represents a similar view of one of the driving Wheels. 7

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all thefigures.

In the drawings, D represents a tumblingdrum constructed of woodenstaves surrounded and bound together by bands or hoops h and having inone of its heads a door a, through which hides and leather to be treatedare introduced. The drum is adapted to contain tanning liquor and isprovided on its interior with 1nwardly-projecting radial shelves 8,which act to raise and agitate the liquor and hides to subject thelatter as thoroughly as possible to the action of the tanning liquor.

The hoops h completely surround the drum and hold the parts thereoftogether, and each is formed with a longitudinal rib 1", extendingcontinuously the entire length of the hoop and projecting outwardly awayfrom the periphery of the drum. The sides of the rib are inclinedconvergently as they extend away from the surface of the drum, so thatthe cross-sectional shape of the rib is that of a wedge. On each side ofthe ribs the bands are formed with flan es which are annular and haveexternal cy in rical bearing-faces.

A bed-frame B supports bearings b, in which are rotatably mounted twoparallel shafts c and d, the first of which has secured to it drivingwheels or rolls 7:, while the other carries rolls or wheels Z. The firstshaft is adapted to be rotated by power through any suitable means, suchas the pulley 'p, and thereby the driving wheels lc are driven. Thesewheels have in their circumferential faces annular grooves m, the sidesof which are inclined and converge toward the axis of the wheels onslants corresponding to the inclinations of the sides of the ribs. Thegrooves are of such width and depth that when the ribs 1" are insertedin them the sides thereof will engage with the sides of the grooves. Therolls Z are provided with grooves n, which are of reater width than theribs 1', so that when tv e latter are introduced into the grooves therewill be no engagement between the sides thereof.

In use the drum is placed uponand supported by the rolls k Z, which arearranged in such a manner that the ribs of the bands enter the grooves,the inclined sides of the ribs engaging the inclined sides of thegrooves m of wheels k and causing a frictional engagement therewith,while the ribs enter grooves n of rolls Z without side engagement. Asshown in Fig. 3, the grooves n are of less depth than the ribs, so thatthe outer cylindrical surfaces of the ribs bear upon the cylindricalsurfaces of the rolls Z at the bottoms of the grooves; but it is obviousthat this arrangement may be reversed and the grooves made of greaterdepth. In that case the bearin would be between the outer faces of therol s and the cylindrical surfaces of the flanges f on each side of theribs; but in either case the contact between these rolls and the drumwould be a simple rolling contact without wedging frictional en agement.1

It will e noted that the shaft 0 is arranged at a higher elevation thanis shaft (1. This has the eflect of throwing the center of the drum morenearly over shaft (1 than over shaft 0, so that shaft (1 and rolls '1are nearer than are shaft 0 and rolls k to a vertical plane extendingthrough the axis of the drum, whereby the greater r0 ortion of theweight is borne by the rolls w 'le only a fraction is supported on therolls k, and the elevation of the shaft is such that the center ofgravity and which act to turn the drum, the other right of shaft d, asseen in Fig. 1, to retain the drum in place and to cause sufiicientfrictional engagement between the ribs and grooves m, so that thedriving-wheels may rotate the drum Without sli ping. The wheels are theonly ones which are driven wheels simply rotating idly. It is thereforeunnecessary for the latter to be mounted upon the same shaft, and theymay as well be independently mounted, but arranged in line.

As the contact between the rolls Z and the drum is simply a rollin oneand there is no frictional resistance to e overcome in separating therib from the sides of the groove and as the pressure tending to wedgethe ribs into the grooves of the driving-wheels is much less than wouldbe the case if a larger proportion of the weight of the drum werecarried by these wheels, it is evident that the resistance to turningthe drum resulting from friction is less by a great amount than is thecase where all of the supporting rolls are wedged upon the sides of therib. I have found by eX eriment that the power required to rotate a drumhavin the usual charge of tanning liquor and stoc to be treated whenarranged as herein described and illustrated is much less than when allthe rolls are constructed as drivers having a wedging engage-.

' ing a drum, bands surrounding the drum, a

plurality of wheels or rolls arranged beneath and near the center lineof the drum for supporting the greater part of the weight thereof,driving wheels or rolls on the other side of the center line and at agreater distance therefrom than the supporting-rolls, in frictionalengagement with the bands, and means for rotating said driving-wheels.

2. The combination of a drum, wheels or rolls arranged in two setsbeneath the drum, the drumresting thereon and one set of wheels beinghigher than the other, whereby the greater proportion of the weight ofthe drum is supported on the lower set, bands surrounding the drumhaving inclined-sided ribs projecting into and frictionally engaging thesides of tapered grooves in the upper wheels, and means for rotatingsaid upper wheels.

3. The combination of a drum having surrounding bands, each formed witha longitudinal rib wedge-shaped in cross-section, a set ofsupporting-wheels, driving-wheels beside and at a higher elevation thanthe sup orting-wheels and having grooves with inc ined sidescomplemental to the ribs, and means for rotating the driving-wheels.

4c. The combination of a drum, bands having longitudinal ribswedge-shaped in crosssection surrounding the drum, driving and idlewheels supporting the drum, the drivingwheels having grooves withinclined sides embracing and frictionally enga ing the sides of theribs, and the idle wheels aving a free rolling engagement with the drum,said wheels bein so arranged that the proportion of the weig t of thedrum borne by the idle, is greater than that supported by the drivingwheels.

5. The combination of a drum, bands surrounding the drum, each formedwith a longitudinal rib wedge-shaped in cross-section, and cylindricalflanges on each side of the rib, idle rolls beneath the drum havinggrooves to receive the ribs without engaging the sides thereof, andcylindrical surfaces at the bottomsof the grooves engagin and supportingthe outer surfaces of the ri s, and drivingrolls having grooves withflaring sides in' frictional engagement with the sides of the ribs, theidle rolls being located nearer than the driving-rolls to a verticalplane extending through the axis of the drum.

6. The combination of a drum, bands surrounding the drum, each formedwith a longitudinal rib wedge-shaped in cross-section and cylindricalflanges on each side of the rib, idle rolls having grooves to receivethe ribs without engaging the sides thereof, and supporting the outersurfaces of the ribs on the surfaces at the bottoms of the grooves, anddriving rolls having grooves with flaring sides in frictional engagementwith the sides of the ribs, said rolls being arranged to support theentire weight of the drum in unequal proportions, the idle rollsreceiving the greater part, and the driving-rolls but a fraction, ofsuch weight.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

WILLIAM B. SMITH.

Witnesses:

JOHN W. DOBBIE, L. WYATT.

